Starkville Hires John Carr as New Head Football Coach

The move was approved by the Starkville-Oktibbeha School District on Friday

STARKVILLE, MS- There’s a new era underway at Starkville High School.

The Yellow Jackets have hired John Carr to become the next Head Football Coach, as approved by the Starkville-Oktibbeha School District on Friday. Carr most recently held the same position at Clinton High School, where he led the arrows to a 4-6 record just one year after the school finished 1-9.

Starkville Athletic Director Jay Hopson has known Carr for years, stemming back to when Carr was leading the Ouachita Parish Football Program and Hopson was coaching at Southern Mississippi.

“Just really excited about John and blessed to have him as our head football coach,” Hopson said. “He’s a tremendous football coach with a wealth of experience. I am truly blessed to have a coach with his knowledge and his experience be our head coach at Starkville High School.”

Carr met with his players for the first time Monday afternoon while the team was lifting weights. Still fresh in his gray suit, Carr walked out of the field house pleased with his first impressions of his new team.

“I’ve coached high school ball, junior college ball, and I’ve coached division one football, and Starkville is a place where you can count on one hand in Mississippi as a head coach that checks all the boxes,” Carr said. “I’m excited about this community, getting to know the community and getting involved with it. Today was day one, and we hit the ground running.”

Carr has been known as a bright-minded offensive coach, known for transforming programs into offensive powerhouses. During his lone year at Clinton High School, his offense improved by over two touchdowns per game compared to the previous season. For Hopson, seeing that transformation certainly made him a prime candidate.

“The one thing about Starkville is that we’re gonna have athletes. I think John’s a guy, with his experience, that can put those guys in great positions to not only score a lot of points but be very successful.”

Carr will make his debut in Yellow Jacket Stadium later this fall.